Athens Airport once again first in Europe at the Routes Europe 2026 Awards!
Athens Airport has once again reached the top of Europe, voted by the airlines!
At this year’s largest annual meeting of the European aviation sector, Routes Europe 2026 (18–20 May), held in Rimini, Italy, the Athens Airport — “repeating last year’s success”, as the organisers noted — once again won first place for its marketing strategy and actions to develop the Athens market, in the highly competitive Over 20 Million Passengers category!
The Routes Awards are unique in their kind, as the vote and decision-making process belong exclusively to the airlines, which reward excellence in aviation development worldwide. This year’s distinction carries even greater significance, coming just a few months after Athens International Airport’s major success at Routes World 2025, confirming the steady momentum of Athens as one of the most competitive and dynamically growing aviation markets internationally.
In Athens Airport’s category, the other shortlisted airports were Rome, Munich, Brussels and Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen International Airport.
In 2025, Athens International Airport recorded a new all-time high, serving 34 million passengers, up by 6.7% compared to 2024. At the same time, 21 airlines, 9 of them new to the Athens market, added services to the airport’s network, introducing 29 new destinations, while 20 additional frequency increases and new services on existing routes further enhanced the city’s connectivity.
Ioanna Papadopoulou, AIA’s Director, Communications & Marketing, stressed:
“The first place in the highly competitive Routes Europe Awards makes us particularly happy and is a strong motivation to continue working with the same dedication to further enhance the connectivity of our airport and our city.
This distinction has a special meaning for us, as it comes from the airlines, which recognise both the continuing momentum of the Athens market and the airport’s consistent support for their further development.
A warm ‘thank you’ to the airlines for their trust and, of course, to my colleagues, the AIA airline marketing team, for their hard work and truly collective effort that led to this outstanding result.”
